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TOR IN CHIEF: BEN WEDGE
LL 126: ONTARIO’S NEW WORST IDEA?
Those of you who lived inOntario during the summer
may have heard about Pre-mier Dalton McGuinty’s
new Bill 126, which im- posed a zero blood alcoholcontent level on all drivers21 and younger. The previ-ous limit was 0.08 – thesame as in Nova Scotia – if
possessed a full drivers license.
he surface, such a law seems difficultrgue against. Any indication that yougree with Bill 126 is seen as being pro-
nk driving; as a result, most articles ands regarding the legislation spent moretrying to avoid making the author
k like an alcoholic than actually dis-ing the effectiveness and ramificationshe bill. But here in the Sextant, politicalectness takes a back seat to logic, so I’t mince my words: Bill 126 is com-
ely nonsensical.
n’t say this because I wish to be al-
ed to drive drunk in Ontario, and think yone under the age of 22 should beto as well. I say this because the bill isst, punishes those who obey the law,will be ultimately ineffective.
e bill said that someone who had their nse for less than 5 years must have zero
C, that would be one thing. That wouldly that alcohol consumption beforeing should be limited to experienceders. Insurance companies do the sameg, upping premiums for new drivers
Trivia every Friday!
Every Friday Afternoon • EngiBEERing in the Design CommonsWear a Sweater Vest for a Free Beer!Apparel • Belt Buckles (Bronze, Silver and Gold Toned), Key Chains and T -Shirts
younger drivers will be ultimatelyineffective. This is because focusingon dropping BAC from 0.08 to 0.0is not affecting the true problemrange. In the US, the average BAC
for fatally injured drunk drivers is0.16, or twice the legal limit; rela-tive risk for injury does not begin torise by a statistically significantnumber until about 0.05 % BAC,and risk of an accident only spikesto above 6 times once BAC is over 0.1%. Once in the 0.15 and over range, however, risk blows up toover 200 times the risk of accidentto a sober driver. Such statisticswould make it obvious that legisla-tion and prevention should be aimedat higher BACs. And while conven-tional wisdom would imply thatthose under 21 years of age would
be the most dangerous impaireddrivers, Canadian data from MADDactually shows that the highest ratesof impairment in trauma traffic acci-dents was the 21-24 year old agegroup, at 33%.
The truth is that there are fairer,safer, and more effective ways tocombat drunk driving. Accusing anentire age group, with neither thedata nor the legal support to do so,is the sort of thing that helps no onewhile ignoring the true root causesof the problem. It also casts Ontarioand Canada in general as a state that
cannot help but have a knee – jerk reaction to ban anything it doesn’t
like. Thanks, Papa McGuinty, for restricting my rights and not achiev-ing anything in the process.
due to lack of experience. However, bas-ing the cutoff on age ignores experience
and indicates the young cannot be trusted.A 21 year old who has been driving, acci-dent free, since 16 is considered moredangerous than a 22 year old who has hadtheir license for one day. Moreover, that21 year old is more dangerous after onedrink than the 22 year old after three.Such a restriction is not only ageist, buthighly illogical. There is even an argu-ment that the law is unconstitutional, dueto discrimination based on age.
Secondly, such a bill only affects thosewho obey the law to begin with. Workingin Ontario during the summer, I occasion-ally went to business dinners where I
would be offered – if not expected – tohave a glass of wine. Being well aware of the 0.08 BAC restriction, as well as in possession of a modicum of commonsense, I would accept one glass of wineover a three hour meal and drive safelyhome afterwards. Once Bill 126 cameinto effect, I would politely decline myone glass of wine, in accordance with a(generally) law abiding nature and, again,a modicum of common sense. But peoplehaving one glass of wine with dinner arenot the real problem. Someone who iswilling to break the law and drive atabove 0.08 is probably also willing todrive above 0.0. As a result, Bill 126 ac-
tually only affects those who are willingto follow the law in the first place – andaren’t drunk drivers to begin with.
Lastly, legislating zero tolerance for
Things to Remember:
The co-op website offers many tips and ivery informative. The website iswww.engandcompscicoop.dal.ca
Round 1: Going on now
CO-OP CORNER
SEPTEMBER 17TH , 2010
Croteau
strial ‘13
te.Paid.
your [email protected]
nly for stories we
Photo: http://www.vmart.pk/main/images/G-Pen-450.jpg
Rigid Member (n):(1) A red bar used to hold the door to the T-Room
open;(2) An ancient term of Engineering lore, which,
even when mentioned in an upper year class,causes enough laughter to put SNL to shame.
(3) A tool that is sometimes used to create moreRigid Members.
Word of the Week
Editors’ note: Word of the Week is a humour column defining common
engineering terms. If you have any complaints or suggestions, pleaseemail [email protected] Obviously, we prefer suggestions.
The Dalhousie Sextant is produced by the Dal-housie Sextant Publishing Society, and aims torepresent students studying and living at SextonCampus.
Editor-In-Chief: Ben Wedge
Assistant Editor: Shani BlankrotTreasurer: Elizabeth [email protected]/dalsextant
Job Posting!The Sextant is hiring a team profiler. Your jobwould be to write descriptions of each team onSexton Campus, (ie. ROV), due bi-weekly. Hono-rarium: $25/article
The Sextant is also hiring a web editor. You areresponsible for posting content on the website,and compiling a weekly e-newsletter from articles
in the print edition. Honorarium: $250/semester
Contact [email protected] for more information.
FROM THE EDITOR The team hereat The Sextant knows what wewant to accom-plish this se-mester. Wealso know what
it takes to getthere. The
problem is, each day is a newchallenge, with unforeseenturns of events. We've hadcontributions from seven differ-ent people, in our first two is-sues! That's a great start to theyear, but we'd like to see thatgrow. For that reason, we'reholding a general meeting,complete with free pizza, onWednesday, September 21stat 5:30. Just RSVP to [email protected] so we can esti-
mate how much to order, or let us know about your dietaryrequirements.
The Sextant used to be itsown publication, but fell ontohard times almost ten years
ago. Imagine if we could re-gain that pride? It takes hardwork and dedication, butthat's nothing for an engineer-ing student who has passedat least one year of courses.
We'd like to pull architectureand computer science stu-dents back into the fold, asthis paper originally repre-sented all of us.
What if we could publish an eight or twelve-page publication bi-weekly? There are other schools that do so already, most success-fully, Waterloo, with the Iron Warrior. Engi-neers like fun, and the Queen's GoldenWords reflects this spirit quite well, in thatthey exist to be a joke. We could be a bal-ance of those two papers, continuing with ourtradition of humour and news.(continued next page)
Ben Wedge
Industrial ‘13
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SEPTEMBER 17TH , 2010
PAGE 2
NTRODUCING CURTIS THE COUNCILOR
My name is Curtis Johnston and I am ap-
pointed as a Member at Large to the Dal-
housie Student Union Council. Many stu-
dents are unaware of the DSU’s role in
their lives as Dalhousie Students. An evengreater number don’t care about the
DSU’s role in their lives. I am not
writing to change that, but merely
because I feel that for far too long
those who are appointed to the role
Member at Large fail to actually represent and respond
he issues raised by students or to raise awareness of
t the DSU does.
an Engineer, and have just transitioned down to Sex-
Campus. I spent the first two years living in Howe
where I was an orientation leader and sat on my
se Council.
fact is that for most students you will get out of the, as much as you put into it. There are some core ser-
s such as grants for traveling to conferences, grants
your societies, free access to meeting rooms, and the
e you take a leadership role at Dal, the more you will
from the $100+ fee that you pay to the DSU. Students
uld be aware that even the Tim Horton’s in the SUB,
the T-Room are services of your student union.
tis Johnston
U Councilor
chanical ‘13
This year, we have seen a more effective and efficient
executive. The executive have worked to produce a
series of videos that have provided exposure to the
work the student union does and that is important step
in creating interest in the the DSU. One video is closing
in on 30,000 YouTube views. That is enough for
every Dal student to have seen it twice! Communica-tion and publicity for events like the Society Fair has
been improved since last year, by Kayla Kurin, Vice
President (Internal) for the Dalhousie Student Un-
ion. Michael Kovendi, Vice President (Finance & Opera-
tions) has made a real effort to appear at DSU events
beyond the scope his portfolio and I must say, as an
outside observer seems to have keen entrepreneurial
sense that is needed by someone in his position. This is
demonstrated in the way he kicked up the calibre of the
upcoming Shinerama Golf Tournament.
Mark Hobbs, a former Vice President (Internal) of the
DSU, a self described critic of the status-quo said “The
executive this year, have been doing a tremendous job.
I am happy to see the DSU headed in the direction thatthey are, and Saulnier and his team deserve a lot of
credit for their hard work. I worked 365 days with Rob
LeFote, Vice President (Academic & External) and I saw
first hand how hard he worked...I watched Hannah
Dahn Vice President (Student Life) in the elections and
knew that new ideas were on their way. I am proud of
this year’s team.”
Most constituents seem to be unaware of the new DSU
office opening in more accessible location on Sexton
Campus. I am personally committing to keeping you
informed. As I talk to other Dal Students who are aware
of the DSU and the services provided by them, it is clea
that the expectations placed on this years council are
high. It is equally clear that the expectations needs tobe placed on individual councilors to contribute, not
just the DSU President and other executives.
The DSU still faces challenges. Leadership is still re-
quired so that Sexton Students have a voice on the
council. Though I represent more than Sexton Campus,
want to assure every Architect & Engineer that I am
here to listen.
Last week, due a misunderstanding with Gazette
Staff, The Sextant failed to be printed. It is important
the current executive show leadership and ensure that
The Sextant is an independent entity that doesn’t have
to stand in the shadow of any other student society.
This is an example of where work still needs to be doneand I will ensure that I actively represent the views of
all students. If you have any concerns throughout the
year or if there is something that you want me to im-
prove on campus please email me
real DSU Dispatch!
RIENTATION!
ntation Day and Fall Fest were a huge success this year! There was over 900 Chinese food meals served for our lunch on Friday, and 960 hamburgers cooked on Thursday. 1st and AU 3rd years were welcomed by DalMan, andtudents enjoyed the entertainment on the field. The tours acted as a discipline challenge, and the winner will beounced shortly! Hopefully the success of these events are indicative of the year to come! Go Dal Eng!ylee Shannon, DSEUS Pres
The Sextant
So, with that, I offer a challenge. Pick up a pen (or open a new word document) and write! We pay you
for our content, which can be a bonus when money istight. It doesn't take much to write an article, perhapsonly a few minutes more than a cover letter. Articlesare due Fridays at 5pm to [email protected]
With that challenge, I leave you be. Thanks, kind readers, for your continued support over the years!
From the Editor, continued
Got gossip? Email the Dal Gossip
Geek! [email protected]
